Born to be a Tragedy
by NariNyxx
Summary: Hazel Clarke was born in hiding from the Wizarding war and Voldemort's rise of power. Now of age to go Hogwarts, she befriends the Marauders, is absolutely terrible at using magic, finds herself in the most dangerous situations and becomes a key part to either the success or failure of stopping Voldemort's success. This is her tale of her unknowing heritage and her inevitable fate.
1. Chapter 1

'Hurry up mum! I don't want to miss the train!' A young girl of eleven years old stood with her arms crossed in the middle of their living room. She was a pretty little thing if you were to excuse her ruffled golden shoulder length hair that had been pulled back into a scruffy bun, and her attire that included ripped, worn in blue jeans that had seen better days. It was caked in mud that trailed up to her ankles and a mahogany jumper that looked almost double her size. She was considered underweight for a child of her age, nothing that a good few meals couldn't fix. If the living room had been anything to go by, it would have been clear that this girl and her mother were living below their means. The floor was carpeted an emerald green colour, which was tired and stained in numerous places, patches were clean which gave the impression that the stains were unremovable. The walls were once a cream colour when it had been freshly painted, however now the plaster had been cracked in numerous places, and the walls were so damaged the colour would be considered more grey than anything else. The room was thirteen by twelve foot, which managed to hold a double sofa and two bookcases with the fireplace in between. The windows were covered by fabric that looked unmistakably like a duvet sheet and there was a faint smell of damp. This had been the girls home for as long as she had known.

'I'll be there in a moment, Hazel!' Cried a rushed female voice from upstairs. The young girl named Hazel scrunched up her face in frustration but didn't respond. Hazel were the colour of her eyes and the meaning behind her name.

After what felt like ages, Hazel heard her mother's feet hit their wooden stairs as it groaned under her body weight. Their stairs once had a carpet fitted on as far as Hazel could remember However the carpet had started to fall apart and become a health hazard so her mother had ripped it up. As far as she could recall, she had never once seen her mother use any magic to fix anything in their home. They were the closest to being muggles any wizarding family could be. However, she would occasionally see her mothers wand stick out in her apron whilst cooking or in a pocket on her person, as her mother was increasingly cautious about keeping her wand on her incase they were scouted by any dark wizards; which was absolutely bizarre in Hazel's eyes. She wondered if her mother would even remember how to _use _her want, she supposed that learning magic wasn't something you'd simply forget. She had always known her mother had been a wizard, though she hadn't witnessed any magic until last week when they had taken a trip to Diagon Alley to get her wand and school equipment.

'Have you got everything, honey?' Her mother, Rose Clarke, walked into the room. Rose had almost been a older body double to Hazel. Hazel had inherited her mother's golden hair. Like Hazel, Rose was unweight and seemingly more so than her daughter. What stood out as a clear differentiation between both mother and daughter however, were Rose's striking sapphire eyes.

'Yes, mum! Can we go now, _please_?' Rose sighed exasperatedly at her daughter. Hazel had always been an impatient child, a trait that easily reminded her of her daughter's father.

'Yes, yes.' Rose replied, grabbing her car keys from one of the high shelves on the bookcase. It was a bizarre place to have them, however not having a coffee table meant Rose found other means of placing her items down elsewhere. Her keys were frequently found on the second to the top shelf, in a handmade clay pot made by her daughters hands, which said in bold red colours, 'MUM'. 'You're trunk is already in the car, where is your cat; Guinevere?'

Hazel uncrossed her arms and became increasingly excited. She ran to the side of the sofa, closest to the window and grabbed a cat basket which held a young blue fur coated, Scottish Fold. Hazel coo'd at the kitten and put her finger between the bars of the front of the basket to stroke the kitten's nose.

'I've already got her mum.' Rose smiled and beckoned Hazel out of the room. She grabbed their coats from the stairs banister and they headed out of the door to go to Charing Cross station.

X

'Now, remember dear. If anyone asks your surname, tell them it's Daniels.' Rose reminded Hazel as they walked onto platform nine. Their pace had quickened due to the London traffic which meant they were ten minutes behind schedule.

'Yes, I remember. I'm Hazel Daniels instead of Clarke. Why are we changing our surname anyway?' Rose sighed as she pushed her daughter's trolley closer to the barrier that reached Platform Nine and Three Quarters.

'We've already been through this, because of the war with the dark wizards its safer to keep our identities unknown. I want you to stay safe. I've already spoken to Albus about it and he's changed your name on the school registry.' Hazel frowned and maintained the speed that they were walking. They had fifteen minutes until the train left.

'It'll be weird seeing Albus everyday. I'm used to us seeing him on our birthdays and Christmas.' Rose stopped them both at a brick wall that was between Platform nine and ten by holding out her arm in Hazel's direction.

'I know, but your godfather told me he'll look after you. You'll enjoy Hogwarts. I want you to make the most of it. We're here.' Hazel blinked and pulled her mother's arm down. She looked confused.

'All I see are bricks. There's no train here..?' Rose smiled at her daughters confusion.

'It's a secret entrance to the platform. Run towards it, we're running late so please hurry up.' Hazel gave her a bewildered look as if her mother had gone crazy.

'I'm _not _going to run into a wall no matter how much you ask me.' Rose placed a hand between her daughters shoulder blades and gave her a small push.

'Trust me, sweetheart.' Hazel gave her a scrutinizing look and took a breath in before doing a full sprint. As the wall got increasingly closer, Hazel closed her eyes and braced for impact…but it never came. She opened her eyes to find herself on a completely new platform and a bright red train which said "The Hogwarts Express". She was on the platform.

Hazel's eyes sparkled with glee as she ran towards the train, taking everything in. There were hundreds of witches and wizards on the platform. Many parents were last minute fussing over their children before they hopped on the train and others already tearfully waving at specific windows which must have been where their children were waving goodbye from.

'Right, I've got your trunk here with Guinevere. I'll be back in a moment, I'll just drop the trunk over to the luggage compartment.' She handed her daughter her cat and ran off with the trunk to the end of the train. Hazel gave her barely any notice as she spotted a boy and girl of similar age to her. The girl wore a sundress that was bright yellow and it horribly clashed with her red hair. She had a broad smile on her face as she walked onto the train alongside the boy. He had dark hair that looked almost as though it shined in the light. The boy had a hooked nose and he already wore his robes for school. He had an impassive face as he walked onto the train after the girl. From their body language it looked as though they already knew each other.

'Now that, that's sorted. Are you ready Hazel?' Hazel blinked and broke out of her gaze, she turned to her mum and gave her a smile.

'Ready! It's now or never.' Rose gave her a smile and pulled her into her embrace. It wasn't often she hugged her daughter due to Hazel's aversion. She had reached the age where she felt being hugged by her mum was embarrassing.

'Stay safe and remember, you're Hazel Daniels now.' Hazel nodded and gave her mum a reassuring look.

'I'll be careful and if I have any problems I'll tell Albus or Hagrid. I'll come back for Christmas too.' Rose gave her daughter a quick peck on the forehead. They both bid their goodbyes to one another and it wasn't long before Hazel was on the Hogwarts Express with Rose waving her on.

The train whistled and Rose looked back at the train door, looking out the window and waving back at her mother. It was then she noticed her mother had started to cry whilst she waved. She'd never seen her mother cry before, Rose had always been a mentally strong person and never liked to show her distress. It was the first time they were to be separated, it must have been harder for her mum than she had realized. She had never known her father, for as long as she could remember, it had always been the two of them together.

Hazel kept waving back to her mother as much as she could until the train had started to move. It wasn't long until the train exited the station and then it turned round the bend.

Hazel lowered her hand and looked down at Guinevere's cage in her hands. Gwen was fast asleep, clearly bored from being in there. She decided to do the next best thing for time to pass by. Not even able to have the company of her cat, Hazel decided to walk down the train to find herself a compartment. She hadn't often met many children her age growing up due to her mum's paranoia of dark wizards. Hazel couldn't understand it herself, after observing the people at the station and the carefree attitudes of the students - it seemed as though it had just been her mother that was so worried about it.

Walking down the compartments, Hazel soon realized that almost all of the compartments were full. She had to walk down at least three carriages towards the front until she finally managed to spot one compartment with two people in it. Ironically it was the ginger haired girl in the sundress and the boy that was already in his robes. She opened the door, deciding that she had enough trying to find one compartment to herself and alerted them of her presence.

'Hi, I'm Hazel. Would you mind if I stayed in here with my cat?' Hazel lifted up her basket to show them her feline. The girl's eyes brightened when seeing the cat and gave her a warming smile.

'Yes of course! My name is Lily, it's nice to meet you Hazel!' She motioned over to the boy, which Hazel then registered that the boys hair was only shiny because it looked a little greasy. Perhaps he just rolled out of bed and didn't have time to wash it this morning. "And this is Severus! Sev is a little quiet though so please don't mind him." The boy Sev, nodded over to Hazel in a greeting, he didn't look particularly happy that they had been interrupted.

'Nice to meet you both. Is it your first year here as well?' Hazel asked whilst deciding to sit next to the more talkative and friendly one, Lily. The said person beamed at the question.

'Yes! I'm muggle born so I don't know too much about the wizarding world. However, I've known Sev for some time now and he's been trying to fill me in as much as he can. Are you muggle born as well?' Hazel shook her head.

'Definitely not, my mum is a witch. I don't know about my father though.' Hazel looked over to Severus. 'How about you?' Severus gave her a squared look and had grabbed a book out of his bag, clearly deciding that now someone else had joined them, he didn't feel the need to talk.

'Half. My mother's a witch.' Before Hazel could respond, he had lifted his book and had begun to read. Lily gave him a pointed look and sighed.

'Again, sorry about Sev. He's my best friend but he hasn't got very good social skills…' Hazel shrugged. She understood. Heck, there would probably be areas she'd lack with social skills, given her lack of meeting people because of her overbearing mother.

'It's fine, don't worry about it.' Lily smiled at her and then looked over at the basket. Her attention drifting on Gwen.

'What's her name?' Hazel gave her a smile and opened up the basket. Cooing Gwen into her arms. Gwen, more than happy to escape the confines of her basket, allowed herself to be Hazels arms and purred.

'This is Guinevere, I call her Gwen for short. She's a Scottish Fold. See her folded ears? Thats part of her breed.' Lily beamed and opened her arms, as if to silently ask if she could hold her. Hazel smiled and placed Gwen on her lap.

'Aww, she's adorable! I've heard the name Guinevere before. Is that from the legend of King Arthur?' Hazel's smile turned wide. Finally, someone had clocked where the name had come from. It had taken her mother ages to clock on.

'Yes! It's one of my favourite stories to read about! Have you read up on it?' Lily shrugged.

'I know _of _it but I've never read about it.' Hazel was on the verge of jumping out of her seat in excitement. Sure, Merlin was probably known about in the wizarding world but when it came to Arthur, he was a muggle and so was his wife Guinevere, so Hazel could only imagine that not many people would have been interested in that aspect of the history.

'Here's something to surprise you with then, Merlin was in Slytherin and he was taught by the founders himself!' Lily looked amazed.

'You mean he _was _actually real?!' Hazel laughed and nodded. Lily looked in absolute awe. 'I can't believe it. And in Slytherin house too… who would have thought? After Sev telling me about all the houses, I would have thought Merlin would have been in Ravenclaw.' Hazel shrugged.

'He was a really ambitious person. He's the most famous wizard but back then maybe the house values were different.' Lily was about to respond when all of a sudden, the compartment door opened. The three turned to face the new visitors. There were two boys. One, with messy black hair and round glasses, he was already wearing his school robes. The other, was a curly haired boy with brown hair that reached to his shoulders. Like the boy next to him, he wore his school robes as well. The boy with the glasses spoke, his attention on Lily.

'Hey, can we join your compartment? Everywhere else is full.' Lily gave him a smile and nodded.

'Of course! The more the merrier! I'm Lily, this is Hazel.' She indicated to Hazel and then nodded over to Severus. 'And this is Severus. Sev, say hi.' The said boy lifted his eyes from his book and murmured a quiet 'hello'. The boy with the glasses beamed and sat down next to Severus' bag which he failed to move. The only space which was then available was next to Hazel, so the remaining boy sat down next to her.

'I'm Sirius Black. Nice to meet you all.' The boy next to Hazel spoke, his attention on her. 'The boy with the glasses is called James.' Hazel glanced over to James, to see his still had his attention on Lily. Hazel turned and smiled at Sirius.

'It's nice to meet you Sirius. I'm Hazel Daniels. Is it your first year too?' Sirius nodded enthusiastically. 'Great! What house would you like to be in? Or do you not know about the houses?' Sirius looked like be wanted to laugh at the question. He gave her a grin.

'All my family are magic folk so of course I know about the houses. I want to be in Gryffindor, it's the best house in the school. Ravenclaw isn't so bad but theres more to life than learning. Hufflepuff are the friendly folk that are rejects for other houses and Slytherin are full of pureblooded evil scum.' Hazel blinked at how casually he spoke offensively about the other houses excluding Gryffindor. She had never heard anyone speak offensively so offhandedly before. 'What about you?' Sirius asked. James butted in to the conversation.

'I _know _I'm going to be in Gryffindor. Both my parents were sorted in the house. I think if I were ever sorted into Slytherin I would drown myself in the lake!' Sirius barked in laughter followed by James. Severus had lowered his book and glowered at the boys whilst both Hazel and Lily frowned at their attitude towards the Slytherin house.

'Slytherin is a house that students enter if they wish to pursue their ambition and use their resourcefulness, unlike those morons in Gryffindor that do stupid actions and are considered brave for it.' Severus scoffed. Hazel noticed both Sirius and James' backs stiffened. Clearly they hadn't expected someone to offend the house they had both decided they wanted to join. Hazel spoke up to try and defuse the situation.

'Well, we all can't decide which houses we like or dislike yet. You never know, we may all end up in houses we never expected and love it.' Lily gave her a smile and nodded in agreement whilst both Sirius, James and Severus gave her an odd look. Clearly the young boys were all stubborn and didn't realize her intentions.

'Only dark wizards go into Slytherin. If you're supporting the house, you're one of them.' Severus scoffed at Sirius' response and gave him a filthy look.

'If you think that way, then you're just a pompous ass.' Lily gave Severus a sharp kick on his shin before turning to both James and Sirius, giving them an equally harsh look.

'I know we've all just met but Hazel is right. It doesn't matter right now because we are not in any house. For all we know we could end up in a house we would have never considered.' Lily gave Hazel a smile, thankful for someone else in the carriage other than her having some sense and all three boys grumbled an apology. James' ears had gone a shade of pink from the telling off.

X

The rest of the journey to Hogwarts had flown by for Hazel and it wasn't long until both her and Lily had to get changed into their robes since they had been the only ones in the compartment that wore their own clothes. Lily had been smart to keep her robes close to her person whilst Hazel had packed them into her trunk. She procrastinated as long as she could but eventually she left Gwen with Lily whilst she had to travel back to the end of the train to find her trunk in the luggage carriage.

Once she walked into the carriage, she had realized then just how terrible her mistake was. There were over a hundred almost identical trunks packed and piled on top of each other and barely any gaps to manoeuvre around. She was relieved she hadn't of brought Guinevere into the carriage with her, or she would have lost her cat in less than a minute.

Groaning in agitation, she twisted and turned around numerous trunks towards the end of the carriage. She'd decided to start from the end and work back towards the exit.

Hazel had almost reached the end of the carriage when unbeknownst to her, a leg was stretched out across the only gap that Hazel could move through and she had not been expecting it. She yelped and fell face first into three trunks stacked on top of each other directly in front with a loud thud.

CRUNCH

'What the bloody hell?!' Hazel struggled but lifted herself up as carefully and quickly as she could and grabbed her nose. It was broken.

'Oh my goodness! I'm so sorry!' Hazel had her eyes scrunched closed in pain and she was yelping, barely able to hear the cries of apology from a startled boy.

'It hurts!' She heard the boy in front of her shuffle and then had her hands be pushed away from her nose and then pressure was placed in their absence. Opening her eyes, she realized a handkerchief had been pressed used to try and stop the blood flow and he had tilted her head.

Taking in the person in front of her, Hazel noticed that judging by their similar height, the boy must of been around her age. He had light brown hair that had just started to cover his eyes, (which were a pale light green colour) and he had some faint scars on his face, the most prominent being on his left eyebrow and cheek. The scars were angled as though someone had ran a long nailed hand across his face.

'I'm so sorry! I didn't expect anyone to come in here. Keep this on your nose, it'll help.' The boy frantically looked around for a window, but there wasn't any. 'I think we're almost at Hogwarts, I'll tell Headmaster Dumbledore and he'll heal you as soon as we get there. I have some chocolate actually.' The boy hastily rummaged through his pockets once Hazel had placed her hand over the handkerchief to keep it in place and he pulled out a chocolate frog. 'Please eat it. It'll help.'

'Who…are you?' Hazel had paused mid sentence to wince. She had never had a broken bone before and hadn't expected it hurt as much as it did, she didn't particularly have a high pain threshold.

'I-I'm Remus Lupin.' The boy named Remus stammered, it seemed as though he was still in shock, himself. His hair was ruffled along with his clothes crinkled. He must of been having a nap in the luggage carriage in preparation of arriving to school.

Remus unwrapped the chocolate for her and offered her the chocolate. She took it tenderly and placed it in her mouth. Remus went back to the handkerchief and pulled it away to inspect her nose.

'Why were you in here alone? That's a bit weird isn't it?' Remus paused and looked a little embarrassed. Deciding that there wasn't much that could be done for her and her nose, he placed the handkerchief back in place and tilted her head up again to calm the blood flow.

'It's my first year and I don't know anyone… I thought it would be better for me to be out of the way.' She rolled her eyes at his answer.

'Clearly not, because now I have a broken nose.' She noticed Remus winced at her tone and she sighed, feeling a little guilty. 'Look, we can go back to the compartment I'm in. I'll introduce you to my new friends. It's my first year too. I'm Hazel Clarke…-Daniels!' Hazel wanted to slap herself, in her pained state she had already gave her real name out before she could stop herself. Remus didn't seem to notice her mistake or that there had been a problem. He responded with a smile on his face and his free hand outstretched.

'Nice to meet you Hazel Clarke Daniels.' With slight hesitation, Hazel reached out and shook his hand. Remus' smile non faltering.

'Eh, just Hazel is fine, Remus.' They both pulled away from the handshake and Remus nodded. There was a pause between them and remembering the reason as to why she was in the carriage in the first place, she turned and started to search for her trunk. Remus, now knowing her name, decided to silently help her. It was the least he could do after accidentally tripping her and it hadn't taken him long until he found her name amongst a pile of trunks all clustered together.

'Is this your trunk?' Hazel blinked and silently walked up to Remus' side of the carriage. A smile fell on her face and she nodded. Remus took it upon himself to pull the trunk out of the cluster and then placed it in a free space on the floor for her so that it made it easier to rummage through.

Giving Remus a grateful look, Hazel bent down and started going through her luggage, she was thankful that her mum had helped her pack and had made sure that her uniform hadn't been packed at the bottom. Remus took a step back and pointed to the door out of the carriage.

'I'll let you go get changed in here. I'll wait for you outside and make sure no one comes in whilst you're changing.' Hazel smiled and gave him a thankful look.

'Thank you, I'll see you in a moment.' Remus nodded and he left the carriage. Out of politeness he didn't look back in fear that she had already started changing. Hazel however, waited until she heard him leave and heard the door clasp shut and then got changed into her set of brand new robes.

X

Whilst Hazel was halfway through changing, she felt the train jerk and she quickly clutched a nearby trunk to steady herself. The horn blew and she realized they must have reached their destination. Quickly throwing her robes on, Hazel rolled up her jumper and jeans and threw them into her trunk before locking it. She stood up and flattened down her pleated skirt so that it rested on her knees. Making sure she looked presentable, Hazel maneuvered her way past the trunks and opened up the carriage door to find Remus awkwardly leaning on the wall on guard. He looked positively awkward and out of place.

'I think we're here Remus. Lets go. I'm sure Lily will look after Gwen.' Remus looked confused as he lifted himself off the wall.

'Gwen?' He questioned, Hazel nodded and they both fell into place together as they walked towards the exit of the train carriage.

'She's my cat.' Realization dawned on Remus' face.

'Oh I see!' He exclaimed.. 'Is it short for Guinevere?' Hazel turned to him in amazement, she beamed at him.

'Ah yes! You're the second person that I've met which has noticed this! My friend on this train, Lily, had figured it out.' Remus' face broke into a broad smile, seemingly pleased that he was able to pick up on it and see the delight on Hazel's face. It was the first most genuine smile he had seen from her.

'I've read a lot of books, my mother is a muggle- I-I'm a half blood though!' Remus suddenly looked panicked as though he had slipped up and was half expecting Hazel to pull a face. He didn't know what Hazel's perceptions were on half bloods or muggle borns. Hazel shrugged as a response.

'You know more about the magical world than me probably. I don't know if I'm half blood or pureblood. I know my mother is a witch but I have no idea about my father. My mum doesn't use her wand though, she's paranoid about using it because of the war that, that Voldemort guy has started with his followers.' Remus have a pained expression at the name and unconsciously touched the thin scarred line that rested on his left cheek.

'Ah, yeah they seem pretty powerful and dangerous.' Hazel hadn't noticed his discomfort and nodded as they reached an exit of the train.

'My mum has a reason to be scared of him, so he must be strong. Even with Albus as headmaster, my mum was worried about me coming to school…' There was a pause as they both jumped off of the train and took in their surroundings.

'Wow…' Both Hazel and Remus paused as they gawked at the Hogwarts castle together in amazement. They both tried to take in the beauty of the castle that was lit up like a Christmas tree in the darkness of the night. The only way either could have described it, was that it was simply _magical. _

'First years, Over 'ere you brats!' A loud bellow that interrupted their conversation. It had come from a old man that was hunched over and stood by the station exit. There were two pathways. One, that seemed to head to the school by land and the other took the path that headed towards the lake.

The man indicated for the first years to take the path towards the lake. He looked to be frail for his age and in his late sixties and he held a look of disgust at the passing students and used his candle in a small birdcage to hit them from behind if he felt they were moving too slowly for his liking. His grey hair was thinning and fading to white, and he wore a tatty, worn brown suede coat that travelled down to what Hazel believed were his knobbly knees.

'C'mon Remus, let's avoid getting hit by _him_.' Remus nodded and they hastily walked past the man and headed down the trail towards the lake.

As they headed to the bank of the lake, Hazel noticed a couple of figures that stood in the clearing by a boat. Looking ahead, Hazel noticed that numerous others had already dispatched and were on their way towards the castle.

'Ah! There you are!' Bellowed a familiar voice. As both Hazel and Remus approached, the moonlight illuminated the figures and Hazel recognized them to be the two rowdy boys she met in the compartment along with a smaller, wider boy that was huddled in the boat by himself, staring longingly at the castle.

'Hey James! Sirius! Where's Lily and Severus?' She asked, as both her and Remus stopped in front of the boys. Sirius, the one that had noticed them, responded whilst James' attention was elsewhere.

'Lily went with Severus up ahead. Gwen's in her basket, we were told to leave everything in the compartment. Who's that- and what happened to your nose?!' His eyed had widened and had a look of shock. Sirius walked over and leaned in to take a closer look. Hazel could only imagine the state of how she looked.

'I tripped and fell.' She took a step back in discomfort and indicated to the boy next to her. 'Sirius, this is Remus. He's cool, you'll like him.' Sirius noticed her discomfort and he swiftly directed his attention to Remus, who in turn appeared nervous from the attention.

'N-Nice to meet you.' He bowed his head.

'Nice to meet you too, Remus. Like Hazel said, I'm Sirius. This is James.' Sirius indicated to James, whose attention was focused on the lake in front of him. He was watching the boats that had already left. 'Ignore him though, he's annoyed that our friend Lily left with a Slytherin fan. They had an argument before she left.' Hazel frowned at him.

'What kind of argument Sirius? What happened?' Sirius spoke in a hushed whisper. 'I'll tell you later.' Hazel nodded. 'By the way, this is Peter. We met him on the train just after you left. He's pretty quiet though so don't be upset if he doesn't talk to you.'

Peter flinched when he heard his name and timidly turned to face them. He gave them a meek nod and turned back to face the castle. Both Remus and Hazel frowned at Sirius, confused by this strange behavior. Sirius shrugged in response.

X

The group had finally caught up with the rest of the waiting first years and Hazel noticed that her Godmother Minerva McGonagall had stood in front of the group and gasped at her appearance. This caught Lily's attention and it had made her turn. Her face was full of horror and it mirrored McGonagall's.

McGonagall rushed over to inspect Hazel's face and she realized that she must have looked worse than what she had imagined.

'Goodness gracious me, Miss Daniels. What happened do your nose?!' Hazel noticed all the attention was on her from the group and she suddenly felt more nervous.

'I tripped on the train.' She could hear a number of students snigger, whilst McGonagall tutted.

'Well, you'll most certainly have to be more careful where you walk. You've been in school for almost five minutes and you already have caused injury to yourself. What will I tell your mother?!' McGonagall lectured, her voice was tinged with concern.

'Sorry Auntie M.' Hazel answered apologetically.

'It's Professor McGonagall here.' McGonagall pulled her wand out from her cloak. She gave Hazel a stern look before uttering a spell. Suddenly the dull ache from Hazel's nose disappeared and she felt her nose move into it's correct place. 'This should fix you up. If you have a numbing sensation or it tingles for more than half an hour, as soon as the sorting is finished grab my attention. I'll take you to the hospital wing.' Hazel gave her a weak nod and unconsciously touched her nose with her hand, expecting to feel some form of pain…but there was none. McGonagall gave her a small smile and handed her a handkerchief. 'You may want to wipe the dried blood off your face before entering the great hall.'

As soon as she believed Hazel had been sorted, McGonagall walked back to the front of the group. They all went dead silent as they stared up at her in a mix of confusion and nerves.

"Now that we're all accounted for, I would like _all _of you to stand here and wait. As soon as the great hall is ready for you, I will come back." She paused to allow it to register. "I will be back in a moment." And with that, she walked through the doors and into the great hall.

'Lily…' There was a pause.

'Yes, Potter.' Hazel could tell that Lily was furious. It was the first time she had used James' surname and there was a cold tone in her voice.

'I'm sorry I upset you.'

'It's not _me _you should be saying _sorry _to.'

There was another pause.

Hazel gave Sirius a questioning look and he whispered into her ear.

'He called Severus Snape a muggle hating twit.' Hazel blinked.

'Is that it?' She asked in a hushed whisper.

There was a pause.

'Severus Snape then insulted James' parents. So James punched him on the nose.'

'Ah…' She glanced over to Severus Snape, who had been at the other end of the group of first years. She could faintly see some dried blood under his nose but it hadn't looked broken.

It wasn't long before McGonagall returned, and she cleared her throat to get their attention.

'The hall is ready for you all now. Please follow me, in a nice orderly fashion.' She turned and opened the large oak doors to the great hall.

It was spectacular. The hall looked to be the length of a football pitch and there were four long oak tables that stretched from one end of the room to the other, they were filled with students of various ages. The walls had hundreds of levitating candles and pictures hung on the walls that moved. The ceiling magically showed the midnight sky above and the stars twinkled as though welcoming the students into the room.

'Woah. My mum was right. It's amazing.' Hazel overheard James muttering to himself. Like her, he was in awe with the sight in front of them. 'It's just like how she described it!' Hazel felt Lily's hand grab hers. She turned her heard to see Lily's face full of nerves, her excitement had evaporated and she looked as though she was about to be sick.

'Everyone is staring at us..' Hazel blinked and looked around. It was as though Lily said, every student in the great hall's eyes were upon the group of first years. She clearly didn't feel the nerves as much as Lily did.

'Yeah, I guess the sorting will be in front of everyone. So they want to get on with it.'

'How can you be so calm?!' Lily looked horrified. 'What if it's made a mistake? What if I'm not a witch and the sorting hat tells me to go home?!' It was a rather bizarre fear Lily had, however Hazel understood. Lily was so excited on the train about the prospect of being in Hogwarts, that the idea of now having to prove which house we belonged in would cause doubt and fear that her hopes could be squashed down and she would have to go back to being a muggle.

'It won't do that Lily. If you wasn't a witch, you wouldn't have got a letter.' Hazel tried her best to calm her down. Believing that being erratic during the sorting could potentially not be a good thing.

'You're right I suppose.' Just as Hazel hoped, Lily started to calm. 'What if we're in separate houses though?' Hazel gave Lily's hand a small squeeze in reassurance.

'If we're in different houses, we'll still be friends.' Hazel replied. 'Now don't panic! You'll do great!' Lily finally gave Hazel a smile and they stopped at the front of the hall. Hazel noticed Dumbledore's attention was on her and he was smiling. She returned it, and his eyes twinkled in joy.

McGonagall stood in front of a stool that had a long, dark brown wizarding hat placed on top of it. It looked incredibly new, with barely a mark on Hazel had looked at the hat in a different light however, she would have unmistakably noticed what looked to be a face silhouetted in its features.

'Now, when I call your name, you shall place yourself on this stool, and I shall place the sorting hat upon your head. Once house name is called out, please sit at the designated table.' Professor McGonagall paused and waited to hear if there were any questions. The students watched her silently, and McGonagall took that as a sign that they understood. She gave a small cough and continued. "We will now start the sorting process." She opened up her parchment. 'Adams, Julian'

A young boy with chestnut hair and freckles on his nose, broke from the group of first years and hesitantly sat down on the stool. McGonagall placed the sorting hat on his head and within a minute, the hat jerked and bellowed.

'Hufflepuff'

The table on the right clapped and cheered as Julian joined them.

Hazel noticed Lily sigh in relief. Realizing that they hadn't needed to show off their magical ability but have an object decide what house would best suit them, must have made her feel more comfortable. McGonagall looked back down at her parchment and called the next student.

'Avery, Kenneth'

A boy that had stood next to Severus had walked through the crowd. He had the look on his face of that he had smelt something absolutely awful. Hazel presumed that perhaps that was how he normally looked as he sat down, giving the tables directly in front of him a dirty look. It only took a few seconds for the hat to make a decision.

'Slytherin'

Hazel heard Sirius scoff and she turned to him. Sirius noticed her look.

'I know the Avery name. They're pureblooded wizards that would never be caught dead in a different house.'

'Oh…How do you know the name?' Sirius was about to reply but then his name was called. Sirius gave her a thumbs up.

'Good luck.' Before she could reply with a 'you too', Sirius had already walked over to the stool and eagerly helped McGonagall guide the hat onto his head.

There was a pause.

'Gryffindor.'

There was a cheer from the far left side of the hall. However the table at the opposite side of the hall on the far right believed it to be an outrage. The Slytherin students who wore emerald green robes looked furious. There were screams, saying that the hat had made a mistake and to _try again._

A girl with black curly hair, who looked vaguely similar to Sirius stood up. She pointed at Sirius accusingly.

'TRAITOR!' Hazel noticed Sirius laugh.

'That will _do, _Black.' McGonagall said. ' _Sit down. _The hat has placed your cousin in Gryffindor.' There was a pause and the girl slowly sank back down in her seat, giving Sirius a filthy look, whilst Sirius looked absolutely thrilled.

Once the great hall calmed, McGonagall continued.

'Cooke, Gary'

A young boy with sandy blonde hair and piercing turquoise eyes walked between Lily and Hazel, breaking their hand holding. Like Avery, he stayed calm and seemed confident on the house he would be placed in.

'Hufflepuff'

The Hufflepuff table cheered again as Gary smiled, seemingly happy that he had been placed into the badger house and joined their table.

'Daniels, Hazel' It was Lily's turn to squeeze Hazel's hand comfortingly.

Hazel suddenly felt a wash of nausea, the nerves had finally hit her. What if the house sorted her in the _wrong _house. Could it be possible?

'C'mon Hazel! It's your turn.' She heard James mutter.

'You'll be fine.' Lily said softly.

With a gulp, Hazel made her way to the front of the group. McGonagall gave her a smile of encouragement and waited until she sat on the stool.

The moment Hazel had been seated, it took less than a second for her eyes to be met with darkness.

There was a pause.

'Now, this was someone I had never expected to meet.' Hazel heard a quiet voice in the back of her mind. It sounded distant, but as clear as a whisper in her ear.

'Sorry?' She asked.

'Such courage, bravery beyond comprehension. You'd do well in Gryffindor.' Hazel blinked, there must have been a 'but', because there was no yell from the hat to say he had made his decision. After a long pause the hat continued. 'You have a mind that's incredibly powerful. Your will is like your father's.'

'You know my father?' The hat ignored her and continued.

'Yes, definitely like your fathers.' It seemed to say to itself. 'Your ambition to be great is strong. You want power to be recognized by your parents. Slytherin would make you great.' Hazel could feel herself become agitated.

'How can I want to be recognized by father, when I don't even know who he is?' Asked Hazel. This had been the first she had heard about her father. Rose had never mentioned him, when she asked questions over the years, her mother simply said he had passed away and not to dwell on him. 'I don't want to be in Slytherin.' She heard a chuckle from the hat.

'You can't lie to the sorting hat, Hazel. I can see it here, in your head. You want power, you want to be great.' Hazel gritted her teeth, she was starting to lose her temper.

'I _don't _want to be in Slytherin!' The hat simply ignored her.

'Theres something else here…' The hat muttered quietly. 'Something I cannot see.' Hazel was confused. She had nothing to hide nor could she even try to stop the hat from delving into her mind.

'Listen, _you_…' But Hazel could not continue. The hat made a loud scream, and Hazel could feel it judder on the top of her head. Still unable to see, she heard the school gasp and she placed her hands on top of the hat to try and yank it off but it wouldn't budge. She could hear McGonagall call for Dumbledore and claim she couldn't take the hat off herself and Hazel could feel herself panic. She felt no pull from McGonagall. The hat suddenly yelled in a high pitched voice, as though it were in pain.

'I DON'T KNOW.'

There was a long pause. The Great Hall suddenly erupted in shock.

'The Hat doesn't know?!' Hazel could hear one student say.

'Do you think she cursed it?'

'She's broken it for sure.'

Hazel felt the hat lift off of her head, as though it were slumped and drained. McGonagall's concerned face was the first thing she saw. Her hand held Hazel's shoulder, turning her slightly to give her a once over.

'Are you alright, Hazel?' She gave her godmother a weak nod.

'I think so.' Out of the corner of Hazel's eye, she could see Dumbledore rise out of his seat and walk over to her. He gently took the hat out of McGonagall's hand and curiously inspected it. The hat, no longer looked brand new but ragged and worn. It looked as though it had aged half a century. There was a pregnant pause before Dumbledore placed the hat back in McGonagall's hand and he outstretched his hand for Hazel. She took his hand and stood.

'Hazel, which house would you like to join?' He asked in a kind, gentle voice. He spoke to her as he would when he would visit her and Rose.

'Gryffindor, Professor Dumbledore.' Dumbledore's eyes twinkled in, what Hazel would only interpret as joy, as he stood in front of hat and stool.

All the students had seemed to notice his presence, because the Hall suddenly went into silence and the students looked towards Dumbledore expectantly.

'It looks as though the hat needed to have some guidance. I formally place Miss Daniels into Gryffindor.' A pin could have been dropped, and every single student would have heard it. There was no cheer. No celebration as Hazel slowly walked towards the table full of Gryffindors.

It was only until she was inches away from reaching the table, did Sirius break out of his shock and he stood. Giving her a beaming smile and a small clap. He was the only student to do so.

'Congrats Hazel!'

'Thanks Sirius.' She muttered, feeling her ears redden and she quickly sat down next to him. Sirius seemed to notice her discomfort and he quickly sat back down. 'You're cousin wasn't very happy..' Sirius' eyes lit up, his eyes full of mirth.

'I suppose she wasn't, was she?' He answered.

'Evans, Lily' McGonagall had seemingly decided to carry on using the sorting hat, however she had paused hesitantly before placing it on top of Lily's head once she was seated on the stool.

The was a long pause.

'Please let Lily be in Gryffindor….' Hazel said to herself quietly. Her fingers crossed under the table.

'Gryffindor' She let out a sigh of relief and joined in with the cheer from the Gryffindor table. Lily beamed and sat next to her.

'I'm so glad we're in the same house! I was really worried for a moment there.' Hazel nodded in agreement.

'So was I! You're stuck with me from now on though!'

'I can live with that.' Lily replied. They giggled amongst themselves and Sirius had left them to it.

The sorting continued and the group of first years in front of McGonagall had started to dwindle. She had finally reached the Remus' name. Hazel had noticed that Sirius' attention was fully on Remus and she was relieved to see him mouthing to himself 'Gryffindor. Gryffindor goddammit.'

There was a pause, and just as both Sirius and Hazel had hoped. The hat yelled 'Gryffindor'. Remus, Hazel noticed, seemed to sigh in relief and a smile appeared on his face. The Gryffindor table cheered and Remus sat facing Sirius across the table. In his excitement, Sirius gave him a high five.

'Thank goodness. I was the only first year _boy _so far!'

X

It wasn't long before Peter Pettigrew was sorted into Gryffindor as well, much to Sirius' relief. Once the hat had announced Peter's house, the Gryffindor table cheered and Peter was left awestruck. He had mumbled a quick 'thank you' before sitting down next to Remus'. His ears scarlet and covered his face in his hands, hiding his embarrassment.

It was inevitable, however the moment James Potter had been sorted into Gryffindor, Sirius had leapt up from his seat and 'whooped'. His claps were the loudest from the Gryffindor table and James gave him a mock bow once he had found his seat next to Peter. It wasn't long before Hazel realized that perhaps it had been good that both him and Sirius had been separated across from the table. Already they seemed to be acting as though they had been friends for years and whilst the sorting continued, they gave each other knowing looks and through insults to every student sorted into the Slytherin house and mock saluted every student that joined either Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw.

It came no surprise to the group, including Lily, that Severus had very quickly been sorted into the house which he seemed to admire the most, Slytherin. Lily had given him a saddened look, clearly upset that they had been separated but Hazel squeezed Lily's hand comfortingly and promised her that she was sure nothing had changed, they were still friends. This had caused James to scoff. Unfortunately for him, this had meant Lily disliked him even more.

And at last the sorting had came to a close. Dumbledore stood back up, and outstretched his arms. He looked across the hall and was absolutely thrilled, as though nothing gave him greater joy than this very moment.

'Now, we must all have worked up our appetites. So before I start the school announcements, please _dig in.'_

As though a flower bud blooming, the large dishes in the middle of the table magically bloomed food in front of the students. Dumbledore chuckled when he heard the loud shocks of both surprise and excitement that echoed in the hall and he sat himself back down at the head of the table.

Hazel could feel herself salivate at the food in front of her. There was everything she could dream of. Steak, roast beef, roast chicken, chicken pie, Shepherds pie, Cottage pie…everything you could imagine, it was on the table.

'You look like your _starving _Hazel. Does your mum not feed you?!' James asked, noticing her pile up her plate with a trio of roasted meats and a miniature mountain of mashed potato.

'_Yes, _she feeds me.' She felt her face warm, she didn't particularly wish to tell them about their living conditions and their lack of income. 'I skipped breakfast this morning before the train, I was too excited.' James' looked unconvinced.

The food was delicious.

It wasn't long before their bellies were stuffed and all the students looked absolutely tired.

Albus Dumbledore rose from his seat and stood in front of the eagle pedestal. He had a kind smile on his face as he looked around the great hall and seemingly, mentally registered the new students in their designated houses. He paused when his eyes met Hazel's and a twinkle in his eye appeared. Whether it was an actual twinkle or the light caught his eye, Hazel wasn't sure. However it comforted her in knowing that his promise held true with her mother, and that he would be there to look after her. The great hall fell into silence in preparation to hear his speech.

'First years, welcome to Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry. The houses you have been placed into will be like your family and you're experiences here will guide you down your path in later life. You will go to class with your peers, eat alongside them and friendships will be born.

'As always, please avoid the _Forbidden _forest. It is named Forbidden for a reason. And this year, we have a new addition to the school grounds, The Whomping Willow. It's located towards the entrance of the forbidden forest and I must ask students to remain _aware_ that close proximity to the tree could cause yourself injury.' Dumbledore paused to allow the students to murmur amongst themselves at the newfound information. Both James and Sirius gave each other knowing grins whilst Hazel noticed that Remus looked anxious and as though he'd almost break a sweat. She placed a hand on his knee comfortingly which caused him to jump slightly. He gave her a fearful look.

'Don't worry, just stay away from it and you'll be fine. I'll make sure you're alright, okay?' There was a small pause. Sirius glanced over at the two whilst Hazel kept her eyes on Remus until he visibly calmed and gave her a small smile.

'Thank you Hazel.' He said in a quiet voice. Sirius turned when he heard Remus' response and gave him the thumbs up.

'Yeah, Remus! We'll all look out for you! Am I right, James?' James, who had been trying to make small talk with Lily, turned to Sirius and gave him a knowing look.

'Well, Of course!' He replied. 'We're all friends here. Even Peter here! Ey, Peter! You'll look out for Remus too right?' The boy Peter, had jumped out of his skin on his seat and nodded enthusiastically. He had clearly not expected to be included into the conversation that he had been listening in on.

Remus has been about to speak when a cough filtered across the room. Dumbledore had been ready to continue his speech.

'I would also like to welcome two new members of staff. The first is our new Herbology teacher, Professor Lupin.' A man stood up that had been seated next to McGonagall, he had short, ashen brown hair that seemed to be due to his hair aging. Hazel could of imagined in his youth, he would have had a darker, more rich chestnut colour. When it came to age, he looked to be someone in his early forties. He gave the hall a quick nod in a form of a bow and sat back down in his seat. His eyes roamed the great hall, and rested in her direction.

Hazel blinked, shocked. Professor Lupin's face broke into a soft smile and he lifted his goblet into a small toast, his eyes never wavering from hers.

'Hey Remus! Is that your dad over there?' Hazel heard James ask. She broke her eyes off of the professor and much like everyone else that were in close hearing range, turned to Remus. His ears turned pink.

'Ah…no. That's my Uncle Cecil. He hasn't had much contact with my parents since before I was born and I barely know him. I've probably seen him on two occasions. I do get a birthday and Christmas card every year though.'

There was a small cough from Dumbledore and sure enough, the hall fell into silence yet again.

'I'm sorry to say, that Professor Dingleberry resigned from his post during the summer.' There was a murmur from the Hall but Hazel noticed that there wasn't an air of shock upon this announcement. Clearly the older years had expected this. Dumbledore continued. 'However, I'm pleased to announce that Professor Aegon will be taking over as the new Defense against the Dark Arts teacher.'

Hazel noticed Professor Lupin's attention had turned to Professor Aegon across the table. He looked a few years older than Professor Lupin, his greying roots in his hair were the biggest giveaway. He stood up and gave a small bow to the students.

There was a small murmur from the hall. Apparently the idea of a new Professor against the Dark Arts teacher didn't come as much of a shock compared to Herbology.

'And now that is all out of the way, it's time for bed. You start your classes tomorrow and an early night would be best for you all. The prefects in each house will guide the first years to their common rooms. Off you trot.'

As everyone stood, Hazel noticed Lily's hand slipped into hers yet again. She squeezed Lily's hand comfortingly as the group of Gryffindor first years followed the fifth year that stood on one of the stools next to the table to grab their attention. It wasn't long until James' walked alongside Lily's other side, trying to get her to talk to him. Sirius was on his other side, laughing at his attempts and Lily ignoring him. She was clearly still upset with Potter.

Remus walked alongside Hazel's other side, whilst Peter trailed directly behind them, close enough so that he could be involved with the group. Remus still looked uncomfortable since the announcements had been made from Dumbledore.

'Hey, are you really that worried about getting hurt by that tree?' Remus broke out of his train of thought and stared at her wide eyed.

'N-No!' He stammered. 'But I wonder how many people may get hurt from it..' Hazel shrugged.

'Only the idiots that didn't listen to Dumbledore's warning. Don't worry about it too much. It's not like it's _your _tree. It's not _your _responsibility.' There was a long pause, and Remus slowly nodded. She could tell he wasn't convinced. 'Listen, if we notice anyone near it, we'll tell him to shove off. Okay? Don't worry so much.'

It wasn't long before they travelled up to the seventh floor and arrived in front of a portrait of a fat lady. She wore a large pink ball gown dress that travelled down to her feet and her hair and make up were immaculate. She looked ready for an extravagant party back in the 1800's. The lady looked at the first years wearily.

'Password?' The prefect stood in front of the group, he took a step forward.

'Ailurophile'

The portrait swung open.

'What the hell is an Ailurophile?!' Hazel heard Sirius loudly. Remus looked amazed.

'A cat lover.' The group looked at Remus in wonder.

'How did you know that, Remus?' Sirius asked.

'Is it not a common word? I read it somewhere..' Remus answered as they climbed into the entrance of the common room. The sight that greeted them was spectacular.

The common room was the definition of cosy. The theme throughout the room were the house coolers, gold and red. A crackling fire had already been alight in a grand fireplace, which was situated at the other end of the room. It gave a golden glow to the arm chairs and sofa that was situated right in front of it. Hazel knew that during the winter, she had found her favourite place already.

There were some dark mahogany table and chairs to their left for students that wanted to either organize a gathering and perhaps play some games, or for people that wanted to study and do their homework outside of the library.

The walls were a deep dark red with golden pattens etched on, which you could barely see as it was behind hundreds of portraits that covered almost every inch of the walls. If you wanted privacy, the common room would definitely not be the place for it.

'It's amazing…' Lily had voiced out Hazel's thoughts.

It wasn't long before the prefect that had guided the group of first years explained the location of the dormitories and the bathrooms for both genders. He explained that they'd receive their timetables during breakfast the next day and to arrive in the great hall for eight. Once he had relayed all the information they needed, he left to join a group of fifth years that had already taken claim to the sofa and armchairs for the night.

Lily suggested that they head to bed to wake up early the next morning and there were murmurs of agreement from the group. Both Hazel and Lily bid the group of boys goodnight and went up the stairs to the girls dormitory. Hazel noticed the moment that they had walked up the stairs and into first floor girls dormitories, that their luggage had already arrived. Gwen was already cozied on what Hazel assumed was her bed, given that her trunk had been placed at the foot.

'Ah! We're next to each other, Hazel!' Lily said excitedly. She ran to her bed and sat on the edge, giving Hazel a broad smile, which she returned.

'Lily, are you sure you're okay being separated from Severus?' Hazel asked her concerned as she walked to her bed and started to change into her pajama's which laid next to Gwen. Lily done the same next to her, on her left There was a long pause. Hazel climbed into bed and noticed Lily do the same.

She jumped when she heard Lily's voice.

'We are all allowed to be in a house that suits our personalities. Just because he's in a different house to me, it doesn't mean he isn't still my best friend.' Hazel turned to face her in bed and smiled at her new friend.

'Of course. I'm sure Severus believes that too.' Lily eyes shone with delight over her agreement.

'I'm so glad that we have each other Hazel.'

'Me too.'

It seemed as though, this was the start of the best thing that has ever happened in Hazel's life.


	2. Chapter 2

_Chapter 2_

_Herbology_

The beginning of Hazel's first day had gone rather well, contrary to her belief after their breakfast in the Great Hall. She had received an Hogwarts Owl from her mother. She had never known her mother to use an Owl before, she was surprised she would even entertain the idea but Hazel supposed that Dumbledore must have contacted her that night and rather than leave the Owl with no mail, she had taken advantage over the situation.

_Dear Hazel,_

_Congratulations on joining Gryffindor! I hadn't wanted to tell you what house I had joined in fear that it would have affected your choice during the sorting, (Albus had told me what happened). I was a Gryffindor as well. It feels like a long time ago and you would probably laugh at the fact that I of all people had been placed in that house but they were the best years of my life. I hope they will be for you as well._

_Take care using your magic and don't get angry if you can't do any spells straight away. It takes a lot of practice and patience. I also hope you are making a lot of friends and I can't wait to hear about them at Christmas, (I do hope you will come back for the holidays)._

_Lots of Love,  
__Mum_

_P.S. Don't worry about the hat. I've spoken to Albus and we've agreed that it must have just been in way over it's head._

Hazel couldn't believe it, her mother had been a _Gryffindor_. The most paranoid person she had ever known had been in a house known for its _bravery_. As much as she loved her mother, it seemed strangely bizarre. She explained this to both Lily and Remus, whom she sat next to at lunch. They both agreed that perhaps, there was more to her mother's fear than meets the eye. Regardless however, her mother had been proud of her and that was what mattered.

'What about your parent's Remus? Are they proud?'

'Well, my father was a little surprised. He was a Hufflepuff. My uncle Cecil however, the Professor for Herbology, was a Gryffindor. Perhaps I have the same traits as him.'

'Do Hogwarts houses usually run in the family then?'

'Almost all the time.' Said a bitter voice. The three turned to see Sirius listening in to their conversation, his fork mindlessly stabbing his scrambled egg. 'That's why you heard my cousin call me a traitor. They hadn't expected it.'

'So how did you join Gryffindor, Sirius?' Lily asked curiously.

'I hate my families values. They believe that muggles and muggleborn shouldn't be able to use magic. They're prejudiced and they have sticks so far up their arse that they'd be choking on the splinters.' Hazel frowned. He continued. 'I guess the hat noticed just how different I am compared to them and thats why he chose this house for me. Probably helped that I begged him to put me in here because this is my parents most hated house and the house I knew James would be in.' James, who had broken his conversation with Peter, gave him a high-five. Hazel looked back down at her letter and frowned, contemplating.

'Sirius, Have you heard from them since you were sorted?' Sirius nodded and picked up the letter that was next to his plate and halfheartedly threw the paper at her. Both Remus and Lily leaned in so they could read together and they were all terribly surprised at how short it was.

_Sirius,  
__You've disgraced the family name.  
__Don't come home for Christmas._

There was no name.

'It's my father's writing.' Sirius answered their questioning gazes towards the paper. 'He's probably trying to find the paperwork to disown me as we speak.'

'Are you going to be okay?' Hazel asked. Sirius shrugged.

'Well they can try as much as they'd like. The Ministry of Magic won't allow them to abandon me whilst I'm underage. Something about being part of the sacred twenty-eight stops them from ceasing their responsibilities as my parents. As soon as Hogwarts is over though, I'm out of there.'

'Like _you'd_ ever leave the comforts of our family.' A silky voice retorted. The group looked up to notice the young girl that had called Sirius a traitor yesterday, had arrived at their table. She had the look of pure malice on her face as she looked down at him from across the table. She hovered directly behind Hazel.

'Let me guess Bellatrix, you're the reason my parents already know that I'm in Gryffindor?' Sirius asked with a bored tone, his eyes indicated to the paper that was still in Hazel's hands. Hazel reread the letter and could feel her blood start to boil. She could understand why he wouldn't want anything to do with his family if they all behaved this way.

'Of course!' Bellatrix had cried incredulously. 'The family should know of your blood traitor antics.' She glanced over at James, who had been glaring at her. 'You're even _associating_ with blood traitors now. I would have thought better of someone from _my_ family.'

'I'm amazed you still class me as _family._ I don't when it comes to _you_.' Bellatrix's eyes darkened.

'Only by blood do I class you as family. You are neither wanted nor liked, however I won't allow you to tarnish our name.'

'It looks as though he doesn't need to. There's usually one bad egg in the family. But it looks like Sirius was the only good egg in a pack of rotten ones.' Lily spoke up, and had said contemplatively.

'I don't know a single family with the name _Evans_. You must be a mudblood.' With this, in a flash both James and Sirius stood up from their seat, fury in both their eyes. However both Hazel and Lily looked confused. They had never heard of the term 'mudblood' before. Hazel noticed that Remus suddenly stood next to her and shielded them both from Bellatrix, and she had noticed that he had stiffened. He clearly wasn't used to being on the offensive side.

'_How dare you!_' Cried Sirius. James had reached for his wand and pointed at her menacingly. The great hall had gone deathly silent and had caught the teachers attention from across the hall..

'Like _you_ could do anything to _me_, Sirius. All you could do is send sparks at me.' She turned to Remus and her face contorted into a nasty grin. 'Look at the state of _you_. What happened to your face? You look as though you came out the _gutter_.'

Hazel may not have understood the phrase mudblood, but she understood what Bellatrix had just said to Remus. Since Bellatrix had been two feet away from her it had been easy for her to retaliate. In a flash she stood, and before any of them had a chance to stop her…

Smack!

A red handprint formed on Bellatrix's face.

Hazel's handprint.

'_Miss Daniels!_' McGonagall's voice had rung and felt a wash of dread. It wasn't long before McGonagall had ran over and placed a firm hand on her shoulder. 'Never would I have expected that behavior from you, especially on your first day of school!'

'It's not Hazel's fault, Professor. My _cousin_ was the one that encouraged it by insulting us.' Sirius had tried to defend her but McGonagall's grip on Hazel's shoulder tightened ever so slightly.

'Nevertheless! If our house had points Mr. Black, I would deduct them!' Bellatrix smirked to herself and turned to go back to her table. Fortunately, Professor McGonagall had noticed and turned to her, fire still in her eyes. 'Not so fast Miss Black. If you hadn't of made comments to members of this table, Miss Daniels wouldn't have resorted to violence. Both of you will receive detention.' Bellatrix hadn't expected this, because she turned so quickly on the spot that Hazel was sure she could have developed whiplash.

'I have head girl duties to do tonight, Professor!' Her eyes had gone wide; the menacing look had disappeared to a look of horror.

'Which makes this punishment even more important Miss Black, as Head Girl you should not be starting fights with students. _Especially_ with first years! Perhaps I should talk to Mr. Slughorn and tell him that this position does not suit you.' At this, Sirius coughed to stifle his laughter. The idea of his cousin losing what she felt was her entitlement filed him with joy.

With an irritated _huff_ and a loathsome look towards her cousin and the group, Bellatrix left the great hall whilst making sure to slam it the doors on her way out.

There was a pause before McGonagall's grip on Hazel's shoulder was released and she sighed and her fury had gone but her irritation was still evident.

'Miss Daniels- _Hazel_.' She corrected. Clearly wanting to indicate her disappointment in her goddaughter. It had worked; the mention of her first name had caused Hazel to wince. McGonagall continued. 'I'm going to have to notify your mother about this behavior. She had asked me to keep an eye on you.'

Hazel couldn't help but feel her face grow slightly warm. How would her mother react, knowing that in less than twenty-four hours, she had already attacked another student and got herself a detention? It was something she was desperate not to find out.

'Please don't tell her, Auntie M.' Her voice was small, and it had caught McGonagall's attention. There was a pause, most certainly from strained, reluctance on McGonagall's part, before she answered.

'I'm sorry Miss Daniels.' She had gone back to using Hazel's fake last name. 'But it's within your best interest. Perhaps this'll stop further attacks in the future.' Clearly Hazel's face must have been giving looks of horror because McGonagall sighed. 'Your mother is a kind witch Hazel, I'm sure she'll let you off _this_ time.' However, Hazel wasn't too sure. She knew her mother was paranoid about her attending Hogwarts, even though she had been thrilled that her daughter had received her letter. Suddenly, Hazel remembered what the sorting hat had told her yesterday.

_Your will is like your fathers. You want your power to be recognized by your parents._

She suddenly had an idea. An idea that could easily backfire but desperate times had called for desperate measures.

'If you tell my mother, she'll worry I'm like my father!' There was a pause. McGonagall's eyes had widened like saucers, a mix of shock, horror and what seemed like fear appeared on her face. Clearly the mention of her father was not what she had expected.

'What did you say-?' Hazel cut her off, realizing she had the opportunity to change McGonagall's mind.

'He was in Slytherin right? She'll worry I'm just as bad as him.' McGonagall flinched slightly at those words. 'If you care about my mother, please don't tell her.'

McGonagall stared at her, completely unsure about what to say. It was as though she had been stupefied. Once Hazel had decided that her silence had become a little too long for her liking she looked up at her godmother.

'…Auntie M?' She asked in almost a whisper. It had worked; McGonagall broke out of her stupor and straightened herself.

'Very well, Hazel.' She almost sighed in relief at McGonagall's words but stopped herself, but before she could thank her, McGonagall continued. 'However, _if_ I find out you've attacked any more students, I will not hesitate to owl her.' And with that, McGonagall turned on her heel and left towards the professors' table to finish her breakfast. In a relief, Hazel fell back into her seat, emotionally exhausted. However, this didn't stop both James and Sirius hounding on her.

'How did you manage to get away with _that_?' James asked, flabbergasted.

'You have family in Slytherin too?' Sirius asked, sounding slightly hopeful. Perhaps he liked the idea that he wasn't the only person being rebellious towards their family. Hazel offhandedly shrugged; she avoided giving them eye contact and reached out for a chocolate muffin on the table.

'I don't know, I just used intuition. The sorting hat seemed to think I do but then it freaked out and went on the fritz. It could have just been playing up.' Hazel took a bite of her muffin, noticing in the corner of her eye that Lupin looked lost in thought. Before she could ask him however, he spoke up.

'Possibly, but the Professor's reaction implies that maybe it's true.' Hazel shrugged.

'I don't know. Nor do I care, he's dead as far as I know.' She took another bite of her muffin. Savoring the chocolate chips in her mouth. Remus looked slightly uncomfortable. 'Are you okay?' She asked, quickly swallowing her mouthful of food and looking concerned.

'I'm so sorry.' Remus started, he looked as though he wanted to punch himself. 'First I break your nose yesterday and now I'm the reason you've got detention.' Hazel placed the remaining of her muffin on the table, giving Remus her full attention.

'What are you talking about? I was the one that hit her, not you.' Remus shook his head, and he looked wounded.

'It was because I was unable to defend myself.' Hazel shook her head so vigorously that she could feel a slight twinge of a headache forming.

'It's not that at all, Remus. I didn't even give you an opportunity to respond before I slapped her.' She patted his back gently. 'Besides, we're friends… right? That's what we do for each other. I couldn't really defend Lily back there because I don't even know what a mudblood was. If I knew, I probably would have hit her back then so don't think too much about it.' At these words, Lily beamed at her.

It wasn't long before McGonagall had reappeared at the Gryffindor table and started to distribute their timetables. Everyone in the group opened their scrolls in sync and just before Hazel could fully digest their weekly schedule both Sirius and James groaned.

'Oh man, I wanted to start with something good but we have Herbology first with the Hufflepuff house.' James said with a slight tone of disgust. 'Remus, any idea what your uncle is like?' Remus shrugged whilst keeping his eyes on his scroll, studying his own timetable.

'Hazel, I'll meet you there.' Lily said abruptly. Both Hazel and Remus blinked and turned to face her. Lily's attention was on someone by the doors of the Great Hall. Hazel noticed that Severus had been standing there on his own, looking slightly uncomfortable with his attention towards their location, and then Hazel understood.

'No problem Lily, I hope things go okay.' Lily smiled gratefully and left the table to greet her best friend.

This had caught the attention of James, who had been sitting opposite Sirius. He made a scoff and mumbled something incoherently, which had made Sirius laugh.

X

Once both Hazel and Remus had arrived at the entrance of greenhouse one, followed closely by James, Sirius and their friend, Peter. They noticed group had formed and the door was shut.

'What's happening?' Hazel asked Lily, she had been standing at the back of the group seemingly irritated.

'Professor Lupin has decided that we will not be in the greenhouses today. He's decided that in this _weather_, we should go on a little _trip_.' Hazel could understand her irritation; it was pelting with rain outside in the grounds and their cloaks done little to keep them dry. Lily continued. 'But _Professor_ Lupin has just gone to get his _coat_!' And sure enough, Professor Lupin returned with his thick muggle coat. It looked rather strange on him, with his thin frame it made him look a little like a balloon. This didn't seem to escape both Sirius and James' eyes because they both tried to hold their laughter.

'Ah! Hello Gryffindor, and Hufflepuff. I'm Professor Lupin, nice to meet you all.' The group went quiet as they observed him. He continued. 'And you've all read my little note on the greenhouse. _Fantastic_.' He clapped his hands together.

'Can't you greet us _inside_?' Asked a rather grumpy Hufflepuff.

'Mr. Wiser, I believe?' Professor Lupin asked. The boy nodded. 'When it comes to Herbology, you have to understand that whatever the weather, magical plants will withstand it. Whether it's hot or cold, dry or wet.'

There was a groan from the group and already many had decided that they hated the class. Professor Lupin seemingly ignored this as he cast a charm to securely lock the greenhouses.

'Right. Follow me please.' He turned and headed towards the grounds. The class slowly followed.

It was a rather short walk, but it had felt incredibly long. The rain had seemingly got heavier and the clouds had turned darker. Shivering, the first years followed Professor Lupin as he walked along the outskirts of the forbidden forest. Both Lily and Remus by Hazel's side and the three boys; James, Sirius and Peter, close behind them.

Professor Lupin looked incredibly excited as he used his wand to charm an umbrella above him. A couple of the Hufflepuff students had almost latched onto him as they tried to hover under to keep themselves dry. They tried to do so inconspicuously but Hazel had a sneaking impression that Professor Lupin was aware, as he frequently looked over his shoulder to smile at them.

As they approached the edge of the forest, Professor Lupin paused and turned to the group. His eyes scanned as though to count the class to memorize everyone's faces.

'Now, the forbidden forest _is_ in fact forbidden however I've been given permission by Professor Dumbledore for us to enter the outskirts. You must _all_ stick together and please, no wandering off.' He turned on his heel and walked into the threshold.

Lily reached out and grabbed hold of Hazel's hard in nervousness. She clearly didn't like the idea of going into the forest after hearing Dumbledore's warning the night before and Professor Lupin's need to acquire permission for a lesson. However, both James and Sirius looked positively thrilled.

'So the forbidden forest isn't _really_ forbidden! It's just when it suits them!' Remus frowned and turned to the couple behind him.

'I don't think that's the case James.' Both James and Sirius raised their eyebrows, their grin never wavering. Peter looked pale and it seemed as though going into the forest would be his idea of a nightmare.

'Nah! James is right, Remus! Look, if it really _was_ forbidden, we wouldn't be going in right now!' Lily looked mortified.

'Sirius! Don't you dare think about going in the forest without permission! I _will_ tell someone!' She turned to Hazel, her eyes wide and pleading. 'You'll back me up here, right Hazel?' The boys turned to her, whilst Lily looked expectant. Hazel sighed. She really didn't care what the boys got up to. She barely knew them and if they wanted to get expelled before the first week was over, who was she to stop them.

'Yeah, please don't tell us if you plan to go in. I would have to hate to tell on you.' It must have sounded very unconvincing. Lily tutted whilst Sirius barked out a laugh. Both he and James grinned and put their arms over each other's shoulders.

'Like we'd tell you, if we planned to go in. We'd just do it, right James.'

'Right Sirius.'

As they approached a small clearing, Professor Lupin had stopped and beckoned the class to look ten meters in front of them. There were gasps and coos of 'it's so beautiful' coming from a couple of Hufflepuff girls. In front of them was what looked like a giant wisteria tree and Hazel marveled at its beauty in the rain. Instead of its leaves being pink like a muggle would expect, the leaves were a glowing light blue. She noticed that the leaves looked vaguely like large daisy petals as their leaved glowed softly flickered with every hit of a pellet of rain, being challenged by the elements. Professor Lupin waited for a few minutes, allowing the class time to register the sight in front of them before he spoke.

'Now, these are called Elven Thistle Trees. They _love_ to live close to the edge of forests, lakes and riverbanks.' Professor Lupin smiled at the amazement from the class, he watched them all slowly walk towards the tree as though in fear that it would lash out at them with a mind of it's own. 'They thrive in the rain and one of the many attributes they have are creating a source of light. If you were ever lost, you would use them to find your way home.'

'However, only pure hearted people can see the light. If you were to use _dark magic_, your eyes would not be able to register it. The reasons for that are highly unknown but many people have their suspicions.

'They can also be used as a hiding place.' Professor Lupin walked over to the tree trunk and tapped his wand. The thick vines that were twisted around the trunk loosened and the tree trunk made a slit horizontally and suddenly opened up as if split in two. 'Now, you may be thinking, why on earth would you want to use it as a hiding place when many witches and wizards would automatically know that you could be hiding in there.' He paused for dramatic effect, after hearing murmurs of agreement he continued.

'Because once in the tree trunk, no witch or wizard can open it up. Only the person _inside_ the tree can open it.' Professor Lupin noticed Lily's hand fly into the air.

'Yes Ms.…'

'Evans.' Lily replied. 'What if they attacked the tree itself? The person inside wouldn't be safe then.' Professor Lupin smiled.

'Very good question Ms. Evans.' He tapped his finger to his chin thoughtfully. 'It takes a seriously skilled wizard to be able to destroy one of these trees. One that has no purity left in his heart whatsoever. The only known wizard that has been able to destroy one of these trees was Grindlewald, and even _he_ had difficulty.'

There was a moment's silence as the class registered what he had said; then the Hufflepuff student, Gary Cooke raised his hand.

'What about that Voldemort guy?' It seemed as though judging by the silence that had surrounded the group, many of the students wanted to ask that exact question. Professor Lupin looked taken aback before his face frowned. Hazel presumed it was in thought.

'Voldemort is definitely a threat in the wizarding world. He definitely aspires to be the strongest wizard but to say he's stronger than _Grindlewald_. Well, lets not flatter him.' He frowned in thought, and Hazel had noticed his eyes had darkened. Clearly _he_ wasn't a fan of talking about the wizard. 'I wouldn't trust him though, and I wouldn't recommend _any_ of you trying to meet him either. I hope we all never find out his capabilities.'

There was a pregnant pause.

'What makes it thrive in the rain, Professor?' Squealed Peter; causing the class and even Professor Lupin to jump in shock. It had been the first time Hazel had really heard his voice. It was higher than the average person and it seemed a little out of place for someone who was more on the pudgy side.

'Another _excellent_ question.' Professor Lupin said enthusiastically, breaking out of his reverie. 'Do you notices those tiny blue orbs floating around the tree? Well, they're _pixies!_'

At this, the little blue orbs halted and turned to their audience, small high pitched giggling was heard and in a split second they charged towards the group, and it was then that Hazel realized their size. There were little pixies varying from the size of a 5 pence coin to the size of a fist.

'Are they baby Cornish pixies?' Asked James, he looked dubious as they started to surround the students. Clearly he wasn't a fan of the creatures and a frown appeared on his face when he noticed they seemed to find Lily's red hair fascinating. Lily giggled as one of the smallest ones grabbed a tiny handful of hair in its hands and placed it on top of its head like a wig. It excitedly jiggled on the spot.

'Are Cornish Pixies a bad thing?' Hazel asked in a whisper to Remus, this caused him to break his attention towards the pixies and blink at Hazel. It took him a moment to register what she had asked.

'Cornish Pixies are not fun to be around. They're little terrors that like to cause chaos anywhere and everywhere.' Remus noticed her frown and said hurriedly, 'we don't have to worry about them in Hogwarts though I'm sure. I doubt the teachers would want them to stick around.' Hazel nodded and they turned their attention back to his uncle.

'No, not _cornish_ pixies.' Professor Lupin replying excitedly to James' question. 'These are phantom Thistle Fairies. They're born _from_ the tree by its spirit and it's their job to look after it. However…they seem to prefer _playing_ than keeping the tree in good condition.' There was a pause and the group turned; they watched the pixies tug on the petals, giggling amongst themselves. A fellow Gryffindor named Mary McDonald raised her hand. Professor Lupin smiled fondly at her, motioning for her to speak.

'How can they be made from the tree?' Professor Lupin smiled. Meanwhile one of the bigger pixies decided that Hazel's clasp to hold her cloak in place was not necessary and it tried it's hardest to muster the strength to yank it apart. She tried to shoo the pixie away but it dodged her hand and kept fighting with the clasp.

Professor Lupin reached up, he carefully took hold of a branch and lowered it so that the class had a better view, and he was tenderly touching the leaves.

'Do you see those leaves glowing? Well, they create the phantom elven pixies, they are made by the _soul_ of the tree.' The class's eyes were locked onto the leaves. He continued. 'When the tree senses the presence of people or creatures, it makes the pixies as a defense mechanism. However, on days like this when it's pelting down with rain the tree ends up making the pixies so that it can play. Water gives this tree energy; it rejuvenates it and gives the tree excess energy. All those pixies are part of the tree. I'm sure you all know, every plant is a living being and it has it's own personality. This tree…likes to show it off a little more than others. Since this tree is a hiding tree, I presume it gets pretty bored.'

'Is the tree dangerous? Or is it just a hide and seek tree?' Hazel asked. She had given up trying to stop the pixie and in turn the pixie had changed it's interest from undoing the clasp to just sitting on her head and using her hair to hide her face. It wanted to play peak-a-boo.

'Thank you, Miss Daniels! I was waiting for someone to ask!' Professor Lupin announced with glee, it seemed as though her name was the only one, which he remembered from the registrar. 'It is only dangerous to the wizards that have the intent to either harm the wizard hiding in it or the tree itself. The pixies would then stand their ground and _trust me_, you wouldn't want them to bite you. They may not be true living beings but they have a nasty temper when threatened. I can't particularly say too much on the subject, as not many people have seen the tree be under threat. These trees are incredibly rare, and the Witches or Wizards that come across it either have no idea what the trees purpose is for or, they're incredibly grateful for the opportunity to hide or use the leaves to find their way out of the forest.'

Professor Lupin took out his pocket watch and gasped, this had caught the class's attention.

_'Oh blimey!_ Look at the time! It took longer than I expected to trudge you all up here, you have your next lesson in _ten minutes_! We've stayed longer than I intended!' The class excluding Remus had groaned, he had breathed a sigh of relief. A couple of pixies had decided that his scars were fascinating and had been trying to run it's hands along them, Remus had been spending his time trying to swat them away from him. 'Come on everyone, it's time for us to leave!' Many of the students seemed relieved, finding it uncomfortable being just slightly in the forest after being told very plainly by Dumbledore that the forest had been banned. Some students however seemed very disappointed, namely James and Sirius.

Just as Hazel was about to leave the forest with Lily by her side, she noticed Professor Lupin backtrack in the corner of her eye and look back towards the tree in wonder. She paused and Lily had carried on walking without her, not noticing that she had stopped. Professor Lupin's eyes had not illuminated by the reflection of the tree's leaves and she had a sneaking suspicion as she noticed his eyes scanned the area for any straggling students, that he was unable to see the light.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

_Defence Against the Dark Arts_

'I hate magic.'

'Ah, I'm sure it'll be easier next lesson, Hazel.' Remus answered sympathetically. They had just left their first transfiguration lesson which involved trying to turn a match into a needle. Lily and Remus seemed to be the only students who had managed to make a significant dent into transfiguring their match whilst Hazel had been at the other end of the spectrum and hadn't even been able to even make her match budge. Sirius, who hadn't been paying attention to class, had to swap his seat with Lily and ended up being Hazel's partner. He had found it hilarious and ended up spending the entire lesson watching Hazel's failed attempts and making no effort on his end.

'You don't understand Remus, _you _managed to _do _something. All I managed to do was make Sirius laugh for the past hour!' Lily, who had been walking on Hazel's other side, sighed and patted her shoulder comfortingly.

'It's hard for a first spell. Don't worry about it. You'll learn it eventually.'

'Yeah, maybe once you've both graduated. I mean, what kind of witch am I, if I can't even do the first spell we learn in school?!' Hazel cried in exasperation.

'Don't think about it too much. We can go through it with you at the end of the day today. Maybe your hand movement was a little wrong or you've been saying the spell incorrectly.'

'I doubt it Remus, even McGonagall looked a bit stumped that it hadn't even moved. Maybe I'm not meant to be a witch.' Lily rolled her eyes at this.

'If you were not meant to be a witch then you wouldn't have received your letter to come to Hogwarts, let alone getting a wand! Plus, you said your mum went to Hogwarts too, right? That alone says you're meant to be here.' Remus looked thoughtful.

'Unless she's a squib, Lily.' Both Hazel and Lily turned to him instantaneously.

'Whats a squib, Remus?' Hazel asked, her insides twisting.

'It means you have either one or both parents able to use magic but their child can't.' The look on Hazel's face was unfathomable.

"Oh my god. I'm a squib.' Lily rolled her eyes in an exaggerated manner.

'Don't be so stupid Hazel. I already _told you_, if you didn't have magic you wouldn't be here! And speaking of places we _should _be. We're supposed to be in Defense against the dark arts in five minutes. Lets go!'

X

With a slight shiver of apprehension, Hazel stepped into the classroom, with Lily pressing in at her back. The room was spartan, with stiff wooden chairs and Victorian school desks. In comparison, the professor's desk was a beautiful mahogany, and paired with a comfortable and elegant high-backed chair. But as striking as it all was, the first thing that sprung to Hazel's mind was that it was empty. In fact, there was no sign of a professor in the room at all. Lily was still pressed up against her, and Hazel asked quietly 'Who teaches us Defense against the Dark Arts, anyway?'.

'Um, let me check' replied Lily, fumbling in her bag for her timetable. 'It says that a Professor Aegon normally takes this class.'

The name meant nothing to Hazel, distracted as she'd been during the sorting. Meanwhile, at the back of the room, Sirius was energetically entertaining James and Remus with an impression of the lecture he'd received from Bellatrix for his 'betrayal.'

'Sirius, you traitorous little runt! You will go to Professor Dumbledore this instant and demand he transfer you to Slytherin House!' he shrieked in a high falsetto to James' raucous laughter. 'Hey James,' he continued, in his usual tones, 'do you think she'd give up if-'

'Silence.'

The harsh word cut across Sirius' chatter like a blade, and the entire class turned to see that the high-backed chair was no longer vacant. In it sat a tall man, with a lined, leonine face, and short grey hair. Though he had only done slightly more than whisper, the entire class fell silent at once. After a brief pause, he rose to his feet and surveyed the class. Once more, the harsh whisper cut through the class:

'Be seated.'

Hazel rushed to find a seat, and Lily sat beside her. Most students followed suit, and hurriedly sat down. Sirius, on the other hand, sauntered across the room in no hurry, and was wandering aimlessly after everyone had sat down. The man fixed him with a steely glare and sharply called him to attention.

'Mr Black. I have asked you to be seated. I am not in the habit of repeating myself.'

The voice was so cold and matter of fact that Sirius did not even think to take it lightly, but swiftly found his seat and sat down. Once he had, the man turned and addressed the class as a whole.

'Welcome, students. I am Clarence Aegon, your Defence against the Dark Arts teacher. Firstly, I would establish some rules that I expect to be obeyed at all times in my class. You shall not speak while I am I speaking. You shall refer to me as Professor Aegon or Sir at all times. You shall arrive promptly for my lessons – I have no patience for tardiness. And finally, you shall obey my instructions immediately, without protest, and to the letter. Any horseplay in my lessons shall be taken directly to the headmaster, with no exceptions. Is this clear?'

A few students murmured a quiet assent, but most of them, including Lily and Hazel, stayed silent, trying to digest what they had just been told. Professor Aegon radiated an authority and confidence that made it hard for you to object to him, thought Hazel, but she wasn't sure how she felt about someone who was so openly a dictator in his own classroom. Professor Aegon gave no sign he had received only murmurs in response to his first statement and continued to introduce the subject. Hazel drew her mind from her consideration of Professor Aegon and pricked up her ears, determined to do well to redeem herself after Transfiguration.

'Defence against the dark arts is not a subject to be taken lightly. Here, I shall teach you how to protect yourself from some of the most deadly curses known in the Wizarding World, and in turn, how to use these curses, expressly for the purpose of defence. The curses and counter-curses you will learn will be vital to ensure your safety and that of the people dearest to you.'

As the cold, harsh whisper continued to sweep through the room, Hazel remembered her mother, wand at her waist, meekly pottering around the house. She must know all of this, having graduated from Hogwarts – why was she so afraid?

'That is why there is to be no frippery in my lessons – a casual attitude leads to accidents and even deaths. Each of you will apply yourselves to my lessons to your utmost capability. You are no longer learning to tend to flowers, or gazing at distant rocks. You are protecting yourselves from those who would do you harm. It has been 25 years since our headmaster defeated the threat posed by Gellert Grindlewald with the spells I shall teach you over the coming years, and there are those who would take up his mantle. That is why it is of utmost importance that you… Mr Black.'

Every head whipped round to the back of the room, where Sirius was showing James something under his desk. Sirius quickly hid it in his pocket, but it was far too late.

'I believe I have just warned you about the consequences of taking my lessons lightly. Stand up, Mr Black,' whispered Aegon with a courtesy so cold that half of the students shivered.

Sirius stood with a careless arrogance. 'If Professor Aegon thinks that being sent Professor Dumbledore is going to scare Sirius,' whispered Lily to Hazel, 'he's in for a-'

'Petrificus Totalus!'

Hazel and Lily both jumped in shock, and from the sudden scraping of chairs, they were far from the only ones. Professor Aegon's voice, which until now had barely risen above a whisper, had roared out across the classroom, and he now stood archly, wand in hand, gazing over their heads. As one, the class turned to see what he was looking at.

Sirius was no longer standing carelessly slouched. Instead, every muscle in his body was rigidly tensed, and he stood as stiffly as a wooden board. Even as they watched, he began to lose his balance and fall, his eyes wildly swiveling in desperation. James sprang from his seat and caught him as he hit the ground, while Sirius remained mutely unmoving.

'Finite' said Professor Aegon, his voice back to its usual cold whisper. At once, Sirius sprang loose, and he shuddered, doing little but moving his arms and legs.

'The full-body bind,' dictated Aegon. 'An elementary, albeit very effective curse. The victim is bound in place, and loses all ability to manipulate their muscles. Excellent for immobilizing assailants, giving yourself time to escape, as Mr Black so adeptly demonstrated. Consider yourself lucky, Mr Black, as usually such impertinence would warrant a trip to the headmaster. However, as it is your first day, I chose to allow you to redeem yourself by volunteering in the lesson.'

For once, it seemed Sirius had no witty retort, or even any desire to step out of line again, lest he be chosen to volunteer for another spell. Hazel felt desperately sorry for him, but as Sirius meekly slid back into his seat, he could do little more than stare resentfully at the Professor. At the front of the room, Aegon paid him no mind, and continued.

'The curse is, however, elementary, and as such, makes an excellent starting point for those who would learn defence against the dark arts. Therefore, today, we shall be learning the rudiments of casting the spell, such as the correct wand action and pronunciation of the incantation. To begin with the wand action, you must grip your wand loosely by the handle…'

"That was so unfair of the Professor," muttered Lily from the side of her mouth, 'using magic on Sirius when all he was doing was talking. He could have given him detention or sent him to Dumbledore, he didn't have to terrify him and make him look stupid.'

'I know,' said Hazel, equally quietly, 'I felt really bad watching Sirius like that. But I think Professor Aegon knows that detentions or Dumbledore don't scare Sirius, and so he wanted to try and keep him in line.'

'Wait, are you taking his side on this?'

'No, no! Not at all! I just think that-'

'Miss Daniels.'

Hazel cut herself short abruptly and looked up. Professor Aegon was looking right at her, wand still in hand. She realised she must have been louder than she intended in her denials.

'Since you seem to be so self-assured in your knowledge of the correct wand motion required for this spell, I would be delighted if you would come up to the front of the class and demonstrate.' said Professor Aegon with a slightly sarcastic smile on his lips. 'Please, do not be shy, your skill must be formidable indeed if you feel you do not need to pay attention to my tutelage.'

Hazel hesitated for a moment, hoping he'd reconsider and continue teaching after embarrassing her as much as he had, but Aegon showed no sign of relenting. Hazel stood up, her heart beating so hard she could hear little else. She slowly walked up to the front, hoping against hope that Professor Aegon would reconsider and allow her to sit down, but it was in vain. She reached the front, and slowly turned to face the class. She saw Lily looking worriedly at her, and for a moment felt a flicker of resentment. Lily had been talking too, but she was the one who'd been pulled to the front and was being publicly humiliated.

'Whenever you are ready, Miss Daniels.'

Hazel had no idea what to do; she'd been completely focused on Lily. She slowly drew her wand, and out of desperation, made a slight flicking motion with it. She was so nervous that on her second flick, she dropped her wand. As she scrambled to pick it up, she heard what sounded like the entire class laughing, and as she stood up, she realised that most were. Even Lily looked slightly amused, turning Hazel's embarrassment into anger again. Before she could do much more than glower, Professor Aegon was at her side again, and his cold, condescending voice shifted all of Hazel's pent up resentment onto him.

'Now that Miss Daniels has finished showing us her flawless expertise, I would like you to pair up with the student sitting directly behind you, or in front of you as the case may be. While remaining seated, you will attempt to cast the full-body bind on your partner. Should you at any point succeed, you shall call me over and I will lift the curse. Likewise, and partial success or unintended consequences merit my immediate attention. Please begin. Miss Daniels, you make take your seat, and thank you for your outstanding demonstration.'

It was the parting condescending jab that saw Hazel's dislike of Professor Aegon curdle and turn to hate. Seething, she took her seat, and ignoring Lily, turned to face the boy behind her. To her pleasant surprise, it was Remus, and he immediately set to trying to help her. As they paired up and drew their wands, Aegon called them all to attention, and asked if anyone remembered the incantation he had used to cast the spell. At first, nobody responded, until Snape shakily raised his hand. As he did, Hazel saw Sirius poke James and gesture with a grin.

'Yes, Mr Snape?'

'P…Petrificus Totalus, Sir?'

'Hmm. It is evident you were paying attention, Mr Snape. Five points to Slytherin,' replied Aegon with the faintest trace of a smile. In the corner, Sirius and James looked mutinous, having clearly had expected Severus to fail and face the same ridicule as Sirius and Hazel had.

'Yes, precisely as Mr Snape said, Petrificus Totalus, along with a wave and a flick of your wand should suffice. Now, please face your partners and begin.'

Hazel looked at Remus and began to panic again. A wave and a flick? What did that mean? Luckily, Remus saw the confusion in her eyes and began to explain, demonstrating with his own wand, and letting Hazel copy him until she felt confident. Once she was happy, they began to practice in earnest, alternating one attempt at a time. Hazel, however, began to grow frustrated after her seventh try without any results.

'PETRIFICUS TOTALUS!' she screeched, while violently waving her wand. Once again, Remus just blinked and smiled sadly.

'You don't need to be so violent with your motion, it's a gentle wave-'

'Oh a gentle wave and flick, it's just so easy isn't it! Gentle's rich coming from someone who managed to break my nose when we first met!' Hazel snapped at Remus. She immediately felt guilty when she saw his face fall, but before she could apologise, he straightened up, waved his wand adeptly, and intonated.

'Petrificus Totalus.'

Immediately, Hazel felt as though she had been encased in concrete. Try as she might, she couldn't move her arms or chest at all. She saw a brief look of elation cross Remus' face, but it was quickly replaced by concern as he called Professor Aegon over to undo the spell he'd cast perfectly. Or so he thought.

'Stand up, Miss Daniels.' Instructed the Professor.

Without thinking, Hazel did so, only realising a second afterwards that she could at all. She had been so focused on her arms and chest that it hadn't even occurred to her she could move her legs.

'Very sloppy, Mr Lupin, very sloppy indeed. Your opponent could easily feign paralysis to lure you near, and then finish you with a simple spell once your guard was down. Your idea of successful is very ill-defined. Perhaps you could follow the example of Mr Snape here, who has successfully and completely paralysed his partner,' critiqued Aegon harshly. As he did so, he gestured to where Severus sat, his partner fully immobilised and seeming to have been for a long time. 'Did you practise this spell privately, Mr Snape?'

'Yes Professor, my parents introduced me to it before I arrived,' replied Snape cheerily.

'Ah, excellent, so not only a diligent student, but also one well-prepared, both excellent qualities. It may well be that you are the demise of a dark wizard someday. Ten points to Slytherin. And with that, let us conclude today's lesson,' elucidated Professor Aegon. 'I will set you some homework momentarily if you would allow me to retrieve it.'

Hazel saw Remus' face fall and felt even worse about snapping at him. She realised that she quite despised Professor Aegon's haughty, condescending attitude, but mingled with her anger was the return of her anxiety from the start of class. She seemed to have been the only one who had had no success with her spells. Everyone else was hurriedly discussing the strange effects they'd gotten; some had even cast it perfectly, like Severus. But everyone seemed to have done something, so why had she been unable to even cast the spell?

'Very well, a simple paragraph on the uses of the full Body-Bind and its creation will suffice, at least 75 words in length. For those who felt inclined to not give this lesson their full attention; Mr Black, I will have an additional two hundred words on the importance of diligence in Defence against the Dark Arts. Miss Daniels, an additional three hundred words on the importance of wand motion and enunciation when casting spells. This is to be returned at your next Defence against the Dark Arts lesson tomorrow. Failure to turn in homework will lead to detention and further homework. That is all, farewell.'

The abrupt dismissal caught many of the students by surprise, with a brief pause before students quickly began to gather their books and pack up. Hazel, however, was in shock. Three hundred words! On a topic she'd never even heard of before, and it was due in tomorrow! That would take up her entire evening, and she'd been looking forward to relaxing with the others after lessons were done. She felt tears come to her eyes, and angrily blinked them away. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Professor Aegon talking to Severus, no doubt complimenting him on his performance. The upsurge of hatred that she felt towards them both overwhelmed her, and she stormed from the classroom and down the corridor.

Eventually, she became aware of someone running after her, and turned to see Lily standing there with her books and bag. Wordlessly, Lily fell in sync with her pace as they walked towards the great hall. Lily seemed hesitant, so Hazel began to speak.

'That extra homework is going to be really difficult, do you think Professor Aegon has something against me?'

Lily looked up, and caught Hazel's eyes. 'No, Hazel, I don't. I just thinking he's stupid and strict. Don't worry about the homework. Me and the others have already decided we're going to help you do it.'

'But you guys…'

'No buts, Hazel. Sirius has extra too, so it's for you both. Besides, we're all friends, aren't we? Everyone offered to help, Sirius, James, Remus, Peter, even Severus. We'll all be right with you helping you get this done. You watch, you'll have such a great essay that even Professor Aegon will have to admit he was wrong.'

Hazel felt a wave of gratitude wash over her, and for the time being, all of her fears about her abilities were buried under how happy she felt at her friends all standing by her.

'Thank you, Lily.'


End file.
